Estremadura

Considering that my parents are both turning 75 this year, the idea of hiking together from Jonsered to Lerum on my birthday was perhaps a bit over the top. Though my initial plan was to only follow Aspen until Rådjursviken and then return the same way, I soon realized that returning would be even more demanding, and as such, we ended up going all the way for a total of eight kilometres and two hundred meters of elevation gain.

At least we got to stop at Aspenäs Herrgård for waffles and my mother also seemed very happy with our swim in Rådjursviken so, hopefully, the day will be more a source of good memories than trauma.

 

Once back in Gothenburg, my parents sadly had to take the train home to Kalmar so they missed out on the birthday dinner consisting of grilled fished tacos and Porta 6 Branco from the Portuguese wine region previously known as “Estremadura”, which seemed like a fitting way end to a great day.

Skagen mornings

Somehow it is a mystery, that in a world of eight billion people, almost everyone seems to be on the same schedule. Yet, for me, that is a distinctive advantage as it means that I could have one of Denmark’s most popular beaches just for myself this morning. Heading out at 5 a.m., I ran up to the North Beach, passing the Air Control Wing with its large white radome, before jumping into the wild waters which, in retrospect, was perhaps a bit risky but all fine in the end.

Later on my run, I made it up to “Grenen” where the two seas meet. Yesterday, it was all crowded with photographers but, today, I was the only one taking photos. Four kilometres later again I was back in Skagen where I found both a gallery with Tintin-on-the-beach drawings and a bakery with some of those lovely Danish chocolate pastries. 

Ship Ahoy

Yesterday, I took the ferry across the Western Sea with the kids and my parents for a couple of days in idyllic Skagen. With Anna having a rapidly approaching deadline for a journal article, we unfortunately had to go alone this time. 

After sailing out under Älvsborgsbron, I ordered the same as everyone else, an open-faced prawn sandwich with a Carlsberg Hof despite it only being 8.30 am, I mean, sometimes one has to go with the flow.

A few days off

Taking a few days off from the running and the blogging, yesterday was Eddie’s twelfth birthday which was celebrated according to the tradition with unlimited screentime and lots of cake. Considering how much he has grown in the past year, he already feels like a fully-fledged teenager, and it is an incredible privilege to be along for the ride.

Having had a mild cold, I was happy to catch up on the running this morning and be able to end the week with a total of 77 kilometres. With William riding next to me, we made an extended stop for a second breakfast in Sannegårdshamnen before continuing up to Karlatornet which is really impressive with its 246 meters.

The Hooja Smoothie

When in Luleå last month, it was not that surprising that a food truck was selling a pre-concert smoothie made with banana, melon, kiwi and lemon. What was perhaps slightly more surprising was how good it tasted so, this afternoon, I decided to replicate it to the best of my ability.

Sticking to the Hooja-theme, I of course had to use a glass from the Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi. As for the result, I think this might be a recurring favourite for the remaining summer.

Last bit

Today, Anna and I ran the last 24 kilometres from Tollared to Alingsås, finishing our summer project of running all of Gotaleden together. Just as two days ago, the morning light in the forest was incredible but difficult to capture with a cell phone camera.

Once in Alingsås, we had scones and coffee with Anna’s colleague Ann-Kristin before taking the train back to Sävenäs. On the train, my dad called, suggesting that we take the kids to Skagen next week so that Anna can get some work done, an offer that I immediately accepted, so now there will suddenly be some more travelling before I start working again as well on 5 August.

Summer weeks

Though still a far cry from June 2021, the last four weeks have been pretty wild with a total of 68 activities and close to sixty hours of training, including more than four thousand meters of elevation gain. As such, I think I should slow down and taper a bit in the two weeks that remain until Halland Ultra-Beach on 3 August.

Consisting of 100k of beach trails with two passages that require swimming, I am right now reading up on dry bags while also trying to locate where I can find water along the route as there will only be one single aid station.

Tollered

Resuming our project of running all of Gotaleden together, Anna and I again took the 06:09 a.m. commuter train from Sävenäs, making full use of our summer cards with Västtrafik. 

With the sun already rising later, the colours were simply stunning as we followed the stream through Säveån’s nature reserve to Floda, passing three horses and countless sheep, before stopping at ICA for a second breakfast. After berries and a freshly baked cinnamon bun, we continued to Nääs and Sävelången for some skinny dipping and then all the way up the hill to the cottage belonging to Anna’s colleague Lisa and her family outside Tollered.

Seemingly taken directly from Pettson and Findus, with houses for “mucklor” and everything, it felt like a universe away from Gothenburg city life. Yet, after a lovely fika in their garden and four kilometres of running, we were on bus 533 and soon back with the kids. 

Three generations

Today, both my mother and Anna’s mother did their first ever Parkrun here in Skatås, finishing in 36 and 37 minutes respectively in brilliant summer sunshine. Afterwards, we went for a swim in Härlanda Tjärn followed by lunch and later, afternoon tea with home-baked scones, on the veranda.

Flashback Friday

In Kalmar, I found this old photo from behind the iron curtain, taken in Budapest near the Statue of St Stephen in February 1987.

Citroën 2CV Charleston

Parked outside my parents’ place, I completely fell in love with a Citroën 2CV Charleston this morning. Had it not been against the “Rasmus Rules” to own motorized forms of transportation, I would seriously consider betting on this “umbrella on wheels” as the Citroën 2CV is lovingly known.

Waking up early, William and I went for a morning jog just as the sun was rising, stopping for a quick swim at Kattrumpan and checking out the walls of the old castle, before returning home where I took turns and went out for a run with my mother instead. Having persuaded her to sign up for Parkrun in Skatås tomorrow, she once again impressed me by being able to sustain a 7:30 min/km pace over 6+ kilometres which, considering that she turned 75 in March, is nothing but incredible.

3x Kalmar with William

Photo intervals

Like in Örebro two years ago, I went for some faster photo intervals last night in my Hoka Rincons, running out to Svinö and the bridge leading over to Öland. After ten kilometres, I stopped at McDonald's for a large chocolate milkshake in the sunset.

The other coast

353 kilometres later, William and I were finally on the other coast, eager to jump into the blue waves. Instead of the salt and sand of Tylösand yesterday, we had a bridge and the brackish waters of my childhood. 

In the afternoon, I borrowed my mother’s bike to deliver two autumn jackets that the kids had outgrown to the northern parts of the city. Riding through some of the richest and poorest neighbourhoods of Kalmar, I passed both the golf course with its expensive cars and downtrodden housing estates with warnings of police camera surveillance, reminding me of some of the contradictions that make up Sweden today, how we as a society have come to prioritize immediate private consumption over long-term social investments.

After delivering the jackets, I realized that I was in fact quite close to Kalmar’s only official naturist beach so I thought I should swing by for a first-time visit before heading back into town. Just like Dragonudden outside Umeå, the atmosphere was warm and welcoming, and it felt like the perfect counter-culture antidote to the cynicism of the rest of the ride.

Open house

Yesterday, Halmstad University had “sommaröppet” for one day with prospective students and family members getting a tour of the campus. Handing out free ice cream and making my best to promote our programme, it was a sudden break from the vacation lifestyle but, already today, William and I are on our way with the train to Kalmar for a couple of days on the other coast.

Having rented a Peugeot 2008 compact SUV, all of the family stopped at the Grimeton radio station on the way down to Halmstad, bringing me back decades in time and across oceans. On the return, we stopped first for a salty swim in Tylösand and then for a forest walk in Haverdal. As much as dislike having a car on an everyday basis, it definitely gives you a lot of freedom on a day like yesterday.

Once I had returned the car to OKQ8, I made salmon and red cabbage tacos which was not such a terrible match to the remaining “Porta 6” Portuguese wine as I had anticipated.

Swimming challenge

Many months, Strava has had a 5k swimming challenge, but I have always fallen short, sometimes only by a thousand meters. But not this month, and I still have half the month to spare. Swimming alone in Härlanda Tjärn always feels a bit risky but there is no obvious alternative unless I confine myself to pool swimming and that would feel sad now when summer is here and everything.

Breakfast smoothie

The other day at the gym, Eddie persuaded me to try the “Total abdominal” machine, and it certainly lived up to its name, giving me muscle pain whenever I have coughed or laughed. This morning, I was at least able to do five kilometres of indoor rowing at Grand Fitness followed by ten exhausting kilometres on the treadmill.

Having been away in the High North, I have otherwise not been able to make much use of my summer of complimentary access to Grand Fitness and its free breakfasts but today I got to try it firsthand. Though not a reason to pay the higher price compared to a regular Nordic Wellness membership, it is definitely a nice touch.

Pembrokeshire

Having made so much progress with her running over the last year, I persuaded Anna to sign up for her first ultra. After doing three races in the Coastal Trail Series, I suggested the 55k Pembrokeshire Ultra and, given all the summers she spent in Wales attending Gregynog Ideas Lab, she immediately saw the appeal so now we are both signed up for April 2025 (yes, we both love planning ahead).

Fuse

Just as I was slow-cooking spaghetti Bolognese while running a washing machine, the fuse in the basement blew out, and it took us quite a while to figure out what was wrong as everything looked alright with our own home circuit. However, some engineering work and a bike ride to COOP through the rain later, dinner was served, and everyone was happy.

As it is Saturday today, that otherwise meant Parkrun and, in my case, also a PR on the Skatås course. Though sub-20 remains a distant dream, I am at least happy to see that I am not getting slower despite doing practically no speedwork.

Back to Bohusleden

After 3.5 fairly dreadful hours on the bus (at least for the kids who felt sick for the entire ride), we were all relieved to the back in Gothenburg. With the kids wanting nothing else than playing computer games, Anna and I seized the opportunity to explore stage 5 of Bohusleden by taking the commuter train to Jonsered and run the 11 kilometres up to Angered.

Though I knew that the trail would be technical with about 400 meters of elevation gain, I was not quite prepared for what awaited us, especially after the last few weeks of heavy rainfall here on the West coast. Stopping at Ramsjön for a swim, we were completely alone which probably says something about how inaccessible this area is despite being only a few dozen kilometres from the city centre. Later, trying to remove some mud from my shoes, I underestimated the depth of a small stream, so my shoes got completely soaked and so did Anna’s. 

But in the end, we made it all the way to Angered and the X3 bus that whisked us back home to the kids (who were quick to point out that they had not missed us the slightest).

City runs

The last time I did a city run in Oslo was right after Tel Aviv in 2018, but this morning I was back running through the affluent Majorstuen neighbourhood known for its many beautiful townhouses from the late 19th century. 

Once in Vigelandsparken, Anna and I stopped for a photo before heading back to the hotel where the kids were having their own room for the first time ever. With train ticket prices having gone through the roof (and Vy not offering any discounts for kids), we are taking Bus4You back to Gothenburg in about an hour.

Tjuvholmen

Once in Oslo, we went for a long family walk across town to Vigelandsparken and its captivating sculptures before jumping into the Oslo fjord for a swim at Tjuvholmen. As is the case with many such places, the area around Tjuvhomen used to belong to a shipyard and be filled with derelict warehouses before undergoing “urban renewal” and being turned into art galleries, expensive waterfront housing and, yes, an outdoor bathing area.

With the water temperature being around 17 degrees, I did not swim for long, but I was happy to see William challenging himself and going into the water as well. Afterwards, we had an Italian dinner at the nearby restaurant Olivia which easily scored five out of five foxes.